Sen. Al Franken fights for his political survival

WASHINGTON — Sen. Al Franken, who until two weeks ago was one of the Democratic Party’s brightest stars, is now fighting for political survival amid mounting allegations that he committed sexual abuse and a solidifying resolve within his party to take a hard line on any such transgressions.

The senator from Minnesota’s problems were compounded Thursday on two fronts: A fifth accuser, this one an Army veteran, stepped forward with an account similar to three others who have claimed they were groped while posing for pictures with the former “Saturday Night Live” star.

U.S. Sen. Al Franken ends a news conference on Capitol Hill on Monday. None of his fellow Democratic senators have called for him to resign, but his position appears shaky. Reuters/Yuri Gripas

John Conyers

Meanwhile, a move by top Democrats to force out another lawmaker showed a growing eagerness to immunize the party on an issue that is turning into a social movement.

In the House, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and her three deputies called on Rep. John Conyers Jr., D-Mich., the longest-serving member of Congress, to resign in the face of accusations that he mistreated female aides for more than two decades. “Zero tolerance means consequences for everyone,” Pelosi said.

Although Pelosi did not mention Franken, her comment had immediate repercussions on the other side of the Capitol, where the comedian-turned-senator has become one of his party’s sharpest and most effective combatants against the Trump administration. He has frequently been mentioned as a possible 2020 presidential contender.

“In light of Pelosi demanding that Conyers step down, I don’t know how Franken can survive it,” said Jim Manley, who was a longtime top aide to former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat.

None of his fellow Senate Democrats has yet called for Franken to resign; the party line has been that he should be dealt with by the Ethics Committee.

But more and more Democrats outside the Senate are saying that it has become untenable for Franken to remain in office, despite the fact that his alleged offenses are arguably of a lesser degree than those of the other cases that have dominated the news. Conyers, for example, has been accused of demanding sexual favors of female aides.

In the House on Thursday, two more Democrats – caucus chairman Joseph Crowley, N.Y., and Tim Ryan, D-Ohio – called on both Franken and Conyers to leave Congress. Earlier in the week, Rep. Kathleen Rice, D-N.Y., said both men should resign.

Privately, many other Democrats are coming to the same conclusion about Franken, said political strategist Lis Smith. “I haven’t talked to a Democrat behind the scenes who thinks this guy should stay,” Smith said.

Franken indicated Thursday that he plans to stay put. “I know I’ve got a lot of work to do to regain people’s trust,” he said in a statement provided to The Washington Post. “But I remain committed to continuing to work as hard as I can for my constituents.”

Democrats do not want to be seen as having a double standard on the issue of sexual abuse, party strategists said.

They frequently bring up the fact that President Trump sits in the Oval Office after boasting of crude acts on a now-famous “Access Hollywood” video, and despite the fact that more than a dozen women have come forward saying he actually behaved that way with them.

Sexual abuse has also become a central question in a Dec. 12 special Senate election in Alabama. Democrats have a chance of winning a seat in that deeply conservative state, thanks largely to the fact that the Republican nominee, former Alabama chief justice Roy Moore, has been accused of making sexual advances to teenage girls when he was in his 30s.

But there are signs that the allegations against Franken may be weighing down efforts by Democrats to gain momentum by using the issue.

Some recent polls show Moore may be recovering, and Trump aides privately credit that in part to accusations against Franken and media figures drawing attention away from the embattled candidate, according to two people familiar with White House thinking.

Concerns about Franken appear to be growing among Democratic donors. Guy Cecil, chairman of Priorities USA, among the largest and most active Democratic super PACs, tweeted Thursday: “This is not complicated. Conyers should resign. Franken should resign. Moore should drop out or be defeated. Hypocrisy on the other side doesn’t justify hypocrisy on our side. Period.”

Racial questions also figure as Congress considers how to deal with two of its members. Conyers is African-American; Franken is white.

“There are, to my count, five of these allegations against Al Franken. There are four, three or four, against the congressman,” Conyers’s attorney, Arnold Reed, said, in a Detroit news conference where he rejected Pelosi’s call for his client to resign.

Here at MaineToday Media we value our readers and are committed to growing our community by encouraging you to add to the discussion.

To ensure conscientious dialogue we have implemented a strict no-bullying policy. To participate, you must follow our Terms of Use. Click here to flag and report a comment that violates our terms of use.